Working out?

It's one thing to go on a two week trip to hawaii and a completely different thing to leave the country for 7 months. Obvious statement surely. But in regards to physical fitness, or lack there of, it seems to trouble both vacation types.

So you have a nice regiment going back home or at least some sort of routine or perceived one when it comes to fitness.  Whats one or two weeks of abatement going to do? I'm actually inclined to agree with this mentality and could even be convinced that it is necessary. But with this vacation type comes the variable of consumption, both food and drinks. 

On a short holiday feel free to drink and eat what you please. Even two weeks of complete disregard to both intake and exertion can be recovered shortly upon your return home. But for the long haul world traveler...not so much.

I've realized that this sort of vacation is an entirely different beast. You can't mentally check out on the fitness or consumption battle. One without the other is tolerable for some period. But to neglect both for even a short period of time has tremendous ripple effects. Ok, enough vaguery and hypotheticals. Here's what i mean...

I left on my trip this past January in peek physical condition. Aside from a tan, I was in tip top form. Very aware of my hard work and hoping to maintain it during my travels, I packed some fitness gear and brought some digital fitness workouts along too. 

I've never been a dedicated or faithful eater.  So naturally, I assumed I could carry on this way during my 7 month excursion. There will be great foods, plenty of new things to try, and no one should neglect the experience of trying them right? Well...yeah, right!  I believe that to be true, to an extent of course. My rationalized theory or goal of trying to find the best apple pie in various cities wasn't really an attraction to cultural cuisines but rather a flawed justification for nurturing my poor eating habbits. This wouldn't have been an issue had I been working out like I intended.

I went into this trip without a clarified regiment. I had no true understanding with myself of what I  really wanted to accomplish in regards to fitness on the vacation.  I just assumed it would take care of its self as it did back home. You know, how priorities seem to be fullfilled?  I didn't forsee my fitness taking a back seat on my priority list. But looking back, of course it would. Without a conscious effort to keep fitness as a priority, it will succomb to the natural course of adventure. 

I was busy meeting people, going to bbq's, and dancing to Samba music.  I was hitting the markets with my new friends tasting weird things. Fried stuff, slimmy green deals, and suger coated delicious morsals of cultural idiosyncrasies. It's so much fun!

I'm now 4 months into my trip. Im now in the worse shape I've been in over the past two years. I'm currently doing something about it!

I've started my fitness routine, finally.  I feel great. I'm soar and full of energy. Today I was doing some exercises on the tile deck just 20 feet from the ocean here in Thailand. I was slipping and slidding, sweating puddles, and huffing and puffing! People, kids on vacation ready to party hard for the full moon, just walk by and stare. In Kuta, Indonesia I was doing a routine on the beach when two little kids came up. They started mimicing me. It was hilarious. I couldn't stop laughing. And if you have ever done the "Insanity" workout you would understand why it's funny. I'm jupping side to side, hitting the deck, and splashing sand all over the place. Next thing I know, the two kids turns into 12...I'm sweating and breathing heavily. So heavily that I was grunting at moments and sure enough these 12 kids would grunt too! It was like red-light-green-light and follow the leader all in one. I was running a fitness class on the beach. The kids were laughing, smiling, and breathing hard. They asked my name, wanted to know where I was from, and if I was married. All ages, from 3 to 14. I had a captive audience and I wish it got filmed.

The thing is, it's really embarrasing to workout on vacation, especially when traveling on a budget. You can't work out in the hostel dorm or in the comunal tv room. So go outside and find a park. Well, I'm 6'2" and white. I get enough attention and stares just walking down the street in normal clothes. Now put me in some dorky workout shorts and sneakers and have me jumping around like a 4 year old. It's tough! REally tough! You have to be extremely comfortable in your skin, with your surroundings, and with the attention. People make jokes, point, and stare.

Ok, ok, hear's the scoop. You aren't going to eat perfect. There's too many cool experiences that involve food when traveling. But you can still control portion sizes and differentitation of the diet. So there's 2 goals you need for consumption. Now with fitness...You know people are going to stare. You know cities are concrete and there is a lot of smog. You can't make excuses now because you know what to expect. Have a plan, a very "specific" fitness plan. Leave the excitement, ambiguity, and spontineity to the food consumption. But know your fitness routine inside and out. Get it done early, really early. Less traffic and people to deal with. Running the streets can bee done at 4 am safer than at any other time. Stay consistant. And don't over do it. Go into your vacation at a tolerable physical condition so you can focus on maitaining rather than achieving new fiets.  That means have your bikini bod before you leave so all you have to do is work on the tan!